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Licences, approvals and dealing with regulators. Led by a WONE Global Partner where one is named. Elsewhere, WONE Global confirms on request whether a vetted Associate firm can act.
Professional knowledge centre
Government and regulatory affairs covers the permissions, reviews and relationships a business needs before and after it enters a market: foreign investment screening, sector licences, incentives and zones, access to public contracts, localisation duties and the rules on engaging officials. These rules decide whether a deal can close, whether an activity can start and whether a bid is eligible. Since 2020 screening has widened sharply: the UK introduced mandatory notification across 17 sectors, Germany reviews non-EU stakes from 10%, India requires approval for investors linked to its land-border neighbours, and the EU adopted a new screening regulation in June 2026. Gulf states have tied incentives and government contracts to local headquarters, hiring and content.
Source-checked research98% of statements checked against a source51 checked against an official source10 checked against a secondary sourceChecked 2026-10-19Not yet professionally reviewed
The rules fall into two groups. Gatekeeping rules decide whether a foreign investor may enter or acquire at all: national security screening, entry routes and excluded activity lists, and sector licences with ownership caps. Conditioning rules set what a business must do to stay in good standing or win work: Emiratisation and Nitaqat quotas, local content in procurement, substance conditions attached to incentives, and registration of lobbying.
For a founder, CFO or general counsel the practical questions come in order: does a planned acquisition or entry need approval, and how long will it take; which activities need a licence and who must approve before incorporation; which incentives are worth their conditions; can the group bid for public contracts and on what terms; how many nationals must it employ; and what must be registered before meeting officials. The modules below compare the UK, US, Germany, France, India, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Singapore, and flag where a point could not be confirmed on an official page.
Most large economies now review foreign acquisitions of businesses that matter for national security, and many make filing mandatory before completion. The triggers differ: the UK looks at 17 sensitive sectors and share thresholds whatever the buyer's nationality, the US reviews deals mainly through a largely voluntary CFIUS process with mandatory cases, Germany reviews non-EU stakes from 10%, and India and Saudi Arabia control foreign entry through approval routes and lists. A deal that misses a mandatory filing can be void or suspended, so screening has to be mapped before signing.
Questions on this topic
12 statements on foreign investment screening
Registering a company rarely gives permission to carry on a regulated business. Most markets add a second layer: a general trade or business registration, then a sector permission from a regulator for activities such as financial services, payments, telecoms or defence, sometimes with foreign ownership limits. The order matters, because some regulators must approve before the company can even be incorporated.
Questions on this topic
10 statements on sector licensing and regulated activities
Governments compete for investment with tax holidays, zone regimes and grants, but most incentives now come with substance conditions and some are tied to market access. Saudi Arabia links regional headquarters status to tax relief and to eligibility for government contracts; the UAE gives qualifying free zone income a 0% rate; the UK and India use designated sites and financial centres. The value of an incentive depends on whether the business can meet the conditions for the full period.
Questions on this topic
10 statements on incentives, special zones and the saudi rhq programme
Public contracts are open to foreign suppliers in many markets, but access depends on trade agreements, registration and local preference rules. The UK, France and Singapore admit foreign bidders broadly; the US and India attach domestic content tests; Saudi Arabia layers registration, a national portal and local content preferences. A foreign bidder should check eligibility and preference rules before it prices a bid.
Questions on this topic
10 statements on public procurement access for foreign bidders
Gulf states in particular tie market access to hiring nationals and buying locally. The UAE sets annual Emiratisation targets with monthly contributions for shortfalls and weights in-country value in federal tenders; Saudi Arabia grades employers under Nitaqat, imposes Saudi participation and training duties on foreign-owned entities, and favours national products in procurement. Singapore uses quotas and levies on foreign workers. These rules affect headcount plans, pricing and the choice of entity from the start.
Questions on this topic
10 statements on localisation and local content
Talking to governments about policy is legitimate, but many jurisdictions require lobbyists to register and disclose. The UK registers only consultant lobbyists, the US federal system registers lobbyists and separately agents of foreign principals, Germany and France run broad registers with fines or criminal penalties, and the EU makes registration a condition for meetings with senior officials. Foreign companies should check these rules before hiring advisers or meeting officials.
Questions on this topic
10 statements on engaging regulators and lobbying rules, 1 not yet checked against a source
Worked example, from official sources
Which foreign investment screening regimes may apply when an investor from outside the EU and US buys 30% of a technology group with operating companies in the UK, the US, Germany and India, and what must happen before completion?
| Market | Regime | Trigger tested | Outcome on these facts | Official source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | National Security and Investment Act 2021 | Holding crosses 25%; target active in a mandatory sector | Mandatory notification and approval before completion if the UK subsidiary's AI activities fall within the current AI schedule (narrower definitions announced in March 2026) | GOV.UK NSI Act guidance; government response March 2026 |
| United States (federal) | CFIUS | TID business; critical technology needing export authorisation; foreign government interest | Voluntary filing unless the US subsidiary deals in critical technologies needing export authorisation for the investor, or a foreign government has a substantial interest in it: then a mandatory declaration at least 30 days before completion | cfius.gov; eCFR 31 CFR 800.401 |
| Germany | AWV sections 55a and 56 | Non-EU acquirer; 10%, 20% or 25% thresholds | 30% exceeds every threshold; artificial intelligence is a listed category, so notification is due without undue delay after signing | gesetze-im-internet.de, AWV |
| India (central) | Press Note 3 (2020) as relaxed in 2026 | Land-border-linked beneficial owners | Variant 1: automatic route subject to sectoral rules. Variant 2: government approval through the FIFP | FIFP FDI FAQ; PMIndia |
Result on these facts
On these facts the deal is likely to need a UK mandatory notification (if the UK subsidiary is within the AI schedule) and a German notification after signing, and both approvals should be conditions precedent. In the US the filing is voluntary unless the critical technology or foreign government tests are met. In India the answer turns on the investor's beneficial owners: no approval is needed if none is linked to a land-border country, or if such ownership is non-controlling and no more than 10%; otherwise government approval is required. The overall timetable is set by the slowest approval.
Confirm the current UK mandatory sector definitions, the export control classification of the US subsidiary's technology, the German subsidiary's exact activities against the AWV list, and the investor's full beneficial ownership chain. The Indian 2026 change should be checked against the Press Note and FEMA rules as notified, which could not yet be checked.
Each statement is numbered to the source it was checked against. We use official sources where we can, and each statement says whether it was checked against an official or a secondary source. Sources last checked on 19 October 2026. None of it has been professionally reviewed yet: it is research checked against official and secondary sources by WONE Global, not legal or tax advice.
Acquisitions of certain entities active in 17 sensitive areas of the economy, including defence, energy and transport, must be notified to and approved by the government before completion under the National Security and Investment Act 2021. Applies regardless of the acquirer's nationality, including UK acquirers. There is no turnover threshold.
Mandatory notification is triggered by acquiring shares or votes that take a holding from 25% or less to more than 25%, from 50% or less to more than 50%, or from less than 75% to 75% or more, or voting rights that allow the acquirer to secure or prevent any class of resolution. Material influence and acquisitions of assets (land, tangible movable property, intellectual property) are not mandatory but can be notified voluntarily or called in.
Following consultation, the government announced on 12 March 2026 that it will change the mandatory sectors, including a new water sector, separate critical minerals and semiconductors schedules, and narrower artificial intelligence and communications definitions, by secondary legislation to be laid later in 2026. Not yet in force as checked: no amending regulations were found on legislation.gov.uk.
A title search of legislation.gov.uk for 2026 regulations on notifiable acquisitions returned no results on 18 October 2026; recheck before relying on the current 17-sector list.
CFIUS, chaired by the Secretary of the Treasury, reviews covered transactions for national security risk; filing is largely voluntary but a declaration is mandatory for certain transactions in which a foreign government acquires a substantial interest and certain transactions involving critical technologies. Federal. Mandatory declaration rules at 31 C.F.R. 800.401, introduced under FIRRMA; statutory basis is section 721 of the Defense Production Act of 1950. Detail is covered in the transactions area.
A declaration to CFIUS is mandatory, at least 30 days before completion, where a foreign person acquires a substantial interest in a TID US business and a single foreign government has a substantial interest in that foreign person, or where a TID US business deals in critical technologies that would need a US export authorisation for the relevant foreign investors. Federal (31 CFR Part 800). TID means critical technology, critical infrastructure or sensitive personal data businesses. Exceptions include excepted investors and certain US-managed funds. A full notice may be filed instead of a declaration.
The eCFR is an authoritative but unofficial editorial compilation; the official text is the annual CFR edition and Federal Register.
Under the Foreign Trade and Payments Ordinance (AWV), a non-EU acquirer's direct or indirect voting share in a German company triggers cross-sector investment review at 10% for the most sensitive categories in § 55a(1) nos. 1–7, 20% for categories nos. 8–27, and 25% for all other companies. Further acquisitions are reviewable when the holding reaches 20%, 25%, 40%, 50% or 75% (depending on category). Atypical control through board seats, vetoes or information rights is treated as reaching the threshold.
A non-EU acquirer must notify the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs without undue delay after signing a contract to acquire a qualifying stake in a German company in one of the sensitive categories listed in § 55a(1) AWV (for example critical infrastructure, cloud services, AI, semiconductors, critical raw materials). Obligation lies with the direct acquirer. For public takeover offers, notification follows publication of the decision to make an offer. The ordinance text names the BMWK; the ministry is now the Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Energie.
An entity of a country sharing a land border with India, or an investment whose beneficial owner is linked to such a country, can invest only under the government route, and a later transfer that brings beneficial ownership within this category also needs government approval. Press Note 3 (2020 Series) dated 17 April 2020, as revised in 2026; subject to the 10% non-controlling exception in in-establish-004. Central rule.
The FAQ uses the 2020 wording (beneficial owner situated in or a citizen of such a country). Secondary sources report that Press Note 2 (2026 Series) dated 15 March 2026 removed the 'situated in' limb so the test now turns on citizens and entities of those countries; the official Press Note text could not yet be checked.
Investors whose beneficial ownership from land-border countries is non-controlling and no more than 10% may invest under the automatic route, subject to sectoral caps, entry routes and conditions, with the investee reporting the relevant details to DPIIT. Beneficial ownership is defined using the criteria of the Prevention of Money-laundering Rules, 2005 and tested at the level of the investor entity. Central rule.
Cabinet decision dated 10 March 2026. Secondary sources report implementation through Press Note 2 (2026 Series) and an amendment to the FEMA (Non-debt Instruments) Rules notified on 2 May 2026; the gazette notification could not yet be checked.
A notifiable acquisition completed without approval under the National Security and Investment Act 2021 is void, and civil penalties can reach 5% of worldwide turnover or £10 million, whichever is greater. Criminal penalties also apply. Retrospective validation can be sought.
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A named WONE Global lead in 3 markets today. In every other featured market, WONE Global arranges qualified local expertise on request and tells you who it is before work begins.
AustraliaLed by Dimitrios Katsaros
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Brunswick · AustraliaWONE Global Partner · Australia
Founder | CEO | Legal Strategist | Entrepreneur Founder of Katsaros & Associates, one of Australia’s fastest-growing immigration and global mobility law firms. Backed by over 15 years of experience, I’ve built a reputat…
Bogotá · ColombiaWONE Global Partner · Colombia
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International tax attorney and strategic advisor with 12+ years across Colombia's DIAN, Ministry of Finance, Senate, Presidency, and EY. Co-founder of V&V Asociados. Specializes in cross-border tax structuring, transfer…
Rome · ItalyWho does what
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